Just got back from the big meeting

Well I went to the meeting tonight about the crappie population at Ky & Barkley Lakes. Thought the meeting was very informative. The KDFW boys took the opportunity to also talk about an Aligator Gar stocking program that they are gonna impliment in the Oxbow lake.

Although we did get off topic a time or two there was some goo imput from all. The subject of closing off some of the bays during the spawning period was brought up. Mr. Rister didn't give it much credence although there was the idea of extending the off limits areas designated for Eagles until May. They're gonna look into that as a possibility. That way they can blame it on the bird watchers! :D We also discussed things like predation from other fish species, Comerans (I call'um water turkeys), Pelicans, etc... We discussed loss of habitat and water conditions that have effected the last few spawns. I believe the main thrust of the meeting was to gather suport for a stocking program. They are a little iffy on whether it will have an impact but seem to be willing to try it. They said that they would probably focus on Blood River on Ky' & Little River on Barkley. And CP you got your wish. They also mentioned stocking programs for Taylorsville & I believe Carr Creek. They are looking to have some "tournaments" to gather brood stock from the lakes & I will try to get info on that. The must be wanting to get go'n on this cause the first tournament is gonna be the 28th of this month at Blood River I thing.

Got to meet Joey Briggs & his son. Saw my ol'buddy Yodibuzz & got to shake the hands of some other fine folks.

All in all I enjoyed the meeting.

Wiskers, appreciate the update, would have liked to attended the meeting myself. I'm just glad the F&W guys are receptive to the idea of supplemental stocking, that is if it seems necessary. Seems like with the popularity of Crappie fishing and the revenue it generates, taking steps to improve the fishery would be beneficial to everyone.

I've never fished Blood, but may try to come over and fish the tourney if the catch helps with restoration efforts.

Wiskers, thanks for the post! Glad to hear things are moving forward...

Thanks, Wiskers! And by the way this is the first time I have been on in a while. Thanks for the info via PM. As is seems like always the case there are issues here at my little store that requires my presence for the next several weeks. On the weekends there are family oblligations that need me to travel to see Kids and Grand Kids. Happens every year during the best fishing time. All this will let up sometime in May.
THE BANDIT

Why in the world are they going to stock alligator gar anywhere?

Maybe to combat asian carp?

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Originally Posted by Quackrstackr

Why in the world are they going to stock alligator gar anywhere?

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Back 40 years ago when I was a little fella fish'n the lake in Ballard county bottoms with Grandaddy you would see these giant gar swim by the boat. Now they are all but gone from those lower lakes. I guess farming chemical, drought and other factors have depleted their numbers.

Basicly the way they explained it there is some money there that has to be used for endanger species. It's kindof a "use it or lose it" deal. Plus, have you been down to the lower lakes lately? The Asian Carp have taken over big time. I actually mistook schools of them for shad this fall while I was fish'n down there. They were everywhere! This has caused a reduction in game fish numbers due to the Carp changing the ecosystem. They believe that these Giant Gar prefer to feed on carp & the like and will help control them to some degree. Sure they're gonna eat a few crappie, bluegill, bass, etc... when they're small, but when they get bigger they'll start feeding on bigger fish like the carp.

After listening to the information that was presented I can see the logic behind the move.

I figured a reduction in the carp might be their motive. I can't see them stocking enough to make a dent without making the fishery out of whack with too many gar. They will have to make them off limits to the bowfishing crowd also if that is their intent.

I would be afraid that all of their stocking efforts are likely to go right out into the river with the first flood. Trying to stock bodies of water that are most certainly going to flood (even multiple times a year) doesn't seem like the most productive use of their $. I guess I have to remember that this is a political entity that we are talking about, though. :D

Wiskers you must have took some good notes you sumed up that three hour meeting in just a few minuits nice to meet you and yodibuzz.Anybody needs any info about the tournament just pm me when i get all the info i will let you know.

nice to meet you guys last night. not many surprises except the news about the alligator gar. paul was up front about flood control being the problem and i really like the fact that they are willing to try something new anyway. good meeting and i am glad they took the time to inform us.

Thanks for those that could make it to the Dept.'s meeting this past Tuesday night. It was just that, a public meeting. We got to exchange information. We told the attending anglers about our ongoing monitoring, concerns that we see with the crappie fishery, and to anticipate some great upcoming bass fishing. We did mention our proposed plan to stock alligator gar. Most need to realize that the Dept. is not just about sport fish, deer and turkey, although that is what brings in most of our dollars, so it normally gets a larger portion of our time. However, we also get monies for protect and promote threatened and endangered species: like the alligator gar. We are proposing a very low stocking rate in back water areas of the Mississippi River. Mostly in some of our WMA lakes, like at Obion and Boatwright. Years ago there were some that opposed the re-introduction of elk. Know looking back, it was a great idea. As for stocking crappie. I don't want to re-invent the wheel, so to say; several other states in the southeast have tried to boost natural crappie populations with stocking. Very few have worked, but a few have. We hope to take what was learned in these other situations and avoid some of the things that might have gone wrong. What we are proposing is to stock white crappie at a rate of 10 per acre. We will stock Blood River (3,855 acres), Little River (3,065), Taylorsville (2,940) and Carr Creek (710). Each of these lakes have crappie, but the population dynamics are a little different, as well as the water quality. At Lake Weiss, they have only been stocking 3 to 4 crappie per acre, and I am told results are marginal. Our stocked white crappie will be OTC marked. The fingerlings will be put in a chemical that will mark the bony structures of the fish with a "glow in the dark" mark. So in a few years we can age them (using the otoliths) and look for the marks. We will be able to determine how well the stocking worked. And whether the stocked fish made up a significant portion of the population? We will stock during each November of 2009-2011. We will monitor each fall with our trap netting, making a comparison of catch from say... Little River and Donaldson, and Jonathan Creek and Blood River. We know it takes crappie 3 years to reach 10 inches, so in 2011 the first stocked fish should be harvestable size. At that time we will help organize a crappie tournament on each lake. Anglers can go catch fish, bring us their catch so we can remove the otoliths. We can age the fish and look for the "glow in the dark" mark. We will be able to determine for example if 100 fish are caught, that X number of them were stocked fish. At the meeting we asked this question, what they thought the "X" should be in order to make this project worth the effort and cost. The average of all responses was 3. That means out of a limit (20 crappie) they expect at least 3 of them to be stocked fish. The estimated project cost, just for KY and Barkley lakes is $83,040 per year. Could be lower, but until the first batch of fingerlings are produced, that would be the cost to raise and transport about 70,000 white crappie to these lakes. During the meeting, we did discuss the Leagues proposal to close off embayments. In theory, closing off embayments from all boaters so that spawning fish are not harassed, would make since. You don't harass them, they should have a more productive spawn. However these results would be isolated. We could not close off embayments were there are adjacent landowners, docks, boat ramps and camp grounds. Our opinion is that closing is not a productive option. The spawning would still rely on have good water levels and normal spring weather. We oppose closing off a public resource when the science does not support such closure. And these lakes belong to TVA and the USCOE, so we would also have to get their support. For a second, third, fourth, etc opinion on this issue. I contacted several of the top PhD’s fisheries scientists, and they also indicated that closing small embayments on a lake the size of KY or Barkley, might help in an isolated area, under the right water and climate conditions. But would not restore the crappie fisheries else where in the lake. Basically a drop in the bucket type out come. Junk science as one stated. However, if given those ideal water and climate conditions, the whole lake would benefit from a successful spawn. One last thing for your consideration. In 2007, an estimate 230,000 crappie were harvested from KY Lake. Research has shown that age 3 female crappie (10 in) will produce a range of 12,xxx-91,xxx eggs, with 44,xxx as an average. A larger crappie could average closer to 94,xxx eggs. We know that not all these eggs will make a crappie. There will be some mortality. Let assume the low end for these larger crappie. If only 1% of the eggs goes on to become a 10 inch crappie. One female would be responsible for producing 940 adult fish. So it should only take about 245 female crappie to replace the harvest (245 X940 = 230,300). Even if you assume the worst, only 1/10 of the eggs make it, which is 2,450 females needed. Ok, if have stayed with me this long. We need your help collecting brood stock. We will be working with anglers at Blood River and Little River on the 28th of February from 7 to 3 to collect crappie. We will be at the State Park ramp at Barkley and Wildcat ramp on KY. We only want white crappie. Those angler wanting to participate need to contact me ([email protected]). Then meet us at the ramp. You can come when ever you want during the day. When you sign in, you will receive a one day permit to keep 9 inch crappie and over the limit (white crappie). We will have you bring us the white crappie to the ramp, where we will have a hatchery truck to store the fish. At Blood River the Twin Lake Crappie club wants to make a tournament out of it. They will be collecting $30 from those that want to participate in their tournament. As anglers bring in the fish we will record them. At the end of the day, the angler with the most white crappie and the angler with the largest white crappie will slit the pot. Contact a club member if you need more information. If someone wants to organize a tournament on Barkley, let us know. Right now I only have two anglers wanting to fish at Little River on the 28th. Again the tournaments are optional. You can just fish for the fun, and donate your live catch to us for use as brood stock.

Excellent information, thank you for taking the time to write all this on the thread. I am an out-of-state guy, so I can't make it to the tournment on short notice, but is there anything else you could recommend to help the fishery based on research i.e. keep more 10"-11" fish and release 13"+ fish. I don't usually keep large females close to the spawn, but I heard the males protect the nesting areas... anyways, trying to elimate as much speculation as I can is challenging to say the least, what can you recommend?

Paul,

Thanks for taking the time to give us this information. I think you will find that most crappie fishermen are willing to work with you folks if we can. I'm no longer a Kentucky resident, but I consider the fishery a valuable resource that is worth preserving and improving. Informed fishermen will support your efforts, and you are doing a good job getting information out.

for your candid comments and explanations. We certainly hope that you will join in on future discussions of concern.

I'd also like to say thanks to Joey Briggs, for getting Mr Rister involved in our site & the discussions therein.

.. cp :cool:

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Originally Posted by prister

Years ago there were some that opposed the re-introduction of elk. Know looking back, it was a great idea.

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As you and I both know, I suppose that all depends on who you talk to. ;) There are many people that don't care much for feeding all of the fish in their pond to a family of otters, either.

I was just questioning the stocking of a predatory rough fish (that I have never heard anyone mention missing their absence), in a flood plane.

I hope your efforts are a success.

Thanks Paul,
Thanks for informing us in a way that I can understand what the goals are. Fisheries science is hard to understand sometimes and I think you really try and break it down for us. Hope things slow down a little for you. I uderstand KDFW was involved a lot with the ice storm and we appreciate you helping everyone out.Hope you hang out on this great site some !! THANKS !!!!!!